Cheltenham 5-1 Vale reaction: fans say Vale can’t score, can’t defend, relegation is looming…
Fans are fuming after the capitulation to Cheltenham with players and the Port Vale owner in the firing line…
Match summary
A simply dreadful day for the Valiants. Apart from Tom Pope scoring a penalty there were virtually no positives to take from this game as Vale were taken apart by Cheltenham’s attack.
Players and management
“You can’t take away from the fact we had a 20-minute spell where the game went away from us from the third goal when we went 3-1 down, which was just unacceptable. You can’t stick up for the players in that spell. I wouldn’t say it is lack of effort because that wouldn’t be true, but certainly naivety, bad-decision making…..it just had everything wrong with what you want to see for that 20 minute period…”
Vale manager Neil Aspin
“The lads didn’t drop their heads and I was pleased with the efforts. They had character to come back and score four more goals against a team who were on top for a little while…”
Cheltenham manager Gary Johnson
Views from the OVF forum
“Just got home as I, alongside many other Valiants have had enough. I now ask that the entire squad today put their hands in their pockets and reimburse us suffering fans for that disgrace. I have attended 95% of games this season and endured utter crap mainly but today was a new low in our history. To surrender totally to a very mediocre opponent was embarrassing. I can’t print what I honestly feel…”
onestepatatime
“Cheltenham have one of the weakest defences in League One and the Vale couldn’t score against them except from the penalty spot. Couldn’t even score against Morecambe a club in the bottom five with a poor defence. We can’t score and we have a useless defence. Relegation is looming…”
PVTony
“Every single player should be ashamed…”
Darren1810
“It’s a bad result and a poor performance. Aspin needs to look at the motivation of the players, find a settled back line and work with them to build confidence how knowledge how each of them plays. The midfield is and has been an issue all season Hannah looks like he is starting to settle into the team and the higher league. I honestly have no idea how Aspin is going to increase creativity as we are sadly lacking in that type of player, so from my point of view we should keep small triangles of players, play simple fast passes to move the ball forward, whether our midfielders are capable of this is another question…
Fozz405
“Worst league result in decades simple as that. Marginally beats the pasting Macclesfield gave us…”
valefan16
“Listening to Aspin’s interview after the game its what he doesn’t say that is important and to me he’s admitting it’s the quality of the squad not a lack of effort, I think we know that and the reason for it…”
blackdog
“I know a lot of you won’t agree with this, but the common denominator this season has been the players. Simple as. If I was Aspo, after that performance, I’d honestly walk into that dressing room as simply ask ‘who here doesn’t want to play for this club?’ and offer to pay up the contracts/end the loan of those who don’t…”
philmpv
“One common denominator explains the decline this club is in and it ain’t the manager…”
Cambridge Don
“Embarrassing result for the club. It’s been a massive decline in the last 18 months due to poor decision after poor decision. Oh to have that “boring” page team that finished mid table in League One that so many people were moaning about…”
caselord
“Aspo couldn’t spend what he hadn’t got…”
Howjy04
“Aspin wanted to extend Gunning’s contract and sign a reasonable strike partner for Pope. Not big asks. NS didn’t deliver…”
Valiant Steve
“Confidence seems a problem along with the constant changing all the time. We need a clear out this summer but need a long term plan to have a settled squad where players are here for five years etc…”
valefan16
“This is the result of who we have as our chairman it really is that simple…”
Bert Llewellyn
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